All hospitals in Vietnam required to implement e-prescriptions by Oct 1

HO CHI MINH CITY – Vietnam’s Ministry of Health has issued a final deadline requiring all hospitals nationwide to implement electronic prescriptions (e-prescriptions) by Oct 1, marking the third extension of the mandate due to prolonged delays.

The requirement is part of a new circular regulating prescriptions and the use of chemical drugs and biologicals in outpatient treatment, which took effect on July 1.

Under the circular, hospitals must fully adopt e-prescribing systems by Oct 1, and other healthcare facilities, including clinics and private practices, by Jan 1, 2026.

This is the third time that the ministry has extended the timeline. The previous deadline required facilities to connect their prescription data to the national system by June 30, 2023.

Electronic prescriptions are considered a key component of the broader electronic medical record system and are required even for outpatient visits that do not involve complete medical records.

Nationwide adoption is seen as essential for monitoring and managing prescription and drug dispensing practices throughout the healthcare system.

National e-prescription platform

The Ministry of Health has already launched a national e-prescription management platform, featuring a centralised database with hospital IDs, doctor IDs and prescription codes.

The system is designed to handle up to 600 million prescriptions a year.

Speaking at a recent conference, Vietnam Health Informatics Association general secretary Nguyen Huu Trong said the platform aims to connect all public and private prescriptions through unique identifiers, allowing pharmacies to securely verify and dispense medication.

“The goal is to prevent the use of outdated or unauthorised prescriptions, reduce medication errors and phase out handwritten or unverifiable prescriptions,” he said.

Mr Trong warned that the current paper-based system lacks transparency, making it difficult to confirm the accuracy or legitimacy of prescriptions, which contributed to widespread drug misuse and public health risks.

Despite the platform’s capabilities, implementation remains slow. Only about 12,000 of more than 60,000 medical facilities nationwide are currently connected, according to Mr Trong.

Many major hospitals have adopted e-prescriptions only for insured patients, leaving out those who pay out of pocket.

Private clinics lag even further, with an estimated 40,000 facilities yet to link their systems.

On the pharmacy side, just 3.6 million out of 218 million e-prescriptions have been confirmed as dispensed, underscoring a major compliance gap.

Many hospitals still rely on paper prescriptions or outdated software that fails to meet national standards or connect to the central database. Even some hospital pharmacies do not verify prescriptions using electronic codes.

Mr Trong said technical barriers are minimal, as most healthcare software can integrate with the system without affecting doctors’ workflows.

Retail pharmacies also stand to gain from more efficient operations and reduced manual input.

However, he pointed to insufficient training, inspections and enforcement as major issues.

“No healthcare provider has been penalised so far, even though penalties are clearly outlined in existing regulations,” he said.

Resistance to transparency and fear of oversight remain major obstacles, especially in the private sector.

“Many providers fear being monitored or penalised for overprescribing or unauthorised drug sales,” he added.

Mr Trong called on the government to ramp up enforcement, educate the public on the need for prescription-based drug purchases and impose stricter penalties to ensure full compliance nationwide. VIET NAM NEWS/ASIA NEWS NETWORK